Four Mississauga Schools and Heather Relf Recipients of Annual School Safety Awards

Today at Council, four Mississauga schools were presented with the Wilde Wood Award from the Traffic Safety Council for their enthusiasm and dedication in promoting safety for students travelling to and from school.

The recipient of the Dr. Arthur Wood Award is Heather Relf, who will be presented with the award at a later date.

“I’d like to congratulate all of this year’s award recipients for making student safety a top priority,”

said Mayor Bonnie Crombie. “We all play an important role in maintaining road safety and ensuring that all students get to school safely. I continue to encourage all our residents to be alert and cautious when driving, particularly in school zones.”

The Wilde Wood Award is given annually to schools from the Peel District School Board and the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board. These schools have demonstrated excellent leadership within their school community in the efficient operation of the school zone safety program and encouraging active transportation (e.g., walk to school programs, bike rodeos). The following schools received this award:

• Hillside Public School (Ward 2)
• Derry West Village Public School (Ward 11)
• St. Alfred Catholic Elementary School (Ward 3)
• St. Barbara Catholic Elementary School (Ward 11)

The Dr. Arthur Wood Award is also presented annually to an individual for advocating and promoting safety for students. This year’s recipient is Heather Relf, a citizen member of the Traffic Safety Council for the last 12 years and vice-chair for the last four years. Heather helped publish various traffic safety newsletters and educational material, been to site inspections in the Meadowvale area and assisted in the launch and relaunch of the Walk to School program.

“Students should be made to feel safe as they make their way to school, whether they are walking or riding their bikes,”

said Chris Fonseca, Ward 3 Councillor and Traffic Safety Council member. “It is thanks to residents like Heather and our schools for showing tremendous commitment to keeping our students and roads safe. The Traffic Safety Council will continue working with the City and the community on recommending safety initiatives.”

About the Awards:

The Traffic Safety Council is an advisory committee of Council that makes recommendations to help protect students from the dangers of vehicular traffic. Dr. Arthur Wood founded the Toronto Township Traffic Safety Council in 1955 which was renamed the Mississauga Traffic Safety Council in 1974. His work promoting traffic safety for children was recognized with the naming of the Dr. Arthur Wood Award.

The Wilde Wood Award was named after James Wilde and Arthur Wood who co-founded the Kiss and Ride concept in Mississauga. However, since 2016, the Traffic Safety Council has focused on recognizing schools who promoted active transportation.

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